Chapter CXXYI. of the Book of the Dead. The gods

who are seated before a table of offerings, and Anubis,
and Thoth, and Am-mit, are the beings who conduct
the case, so to speak, against Ani. On the other side
of the balance stand Ani and his wife Thuthu with
their heads reverently bent ; they are depicted in human
form, and wear garments and ornaments similar to those
which they wore upon earth. His soul, in the form of
a man-headed hawk standing upon a pylon, is present,
also a man-headed, rectangular object, resting upon a
pylon, which has frequently been supposed to represent
the deceased in an embryonic state. In the Papyrus
of Anhai two of these objects appear, one on each side
of the balance ; they are described as Shai and Kenenet,

THE GODDESSES OF DESTINY AND FORTUNE. 141

two words which are translated by “ Destiny ” and
“Fortune” respectively. It is most probable, as the
reading of the name of the object is Meskhenet, and as
the deity Meskhenet represents sometimes both Shai and
Renenet, that the artist intended the object to represent
both deities, even though we find the god Shai standing
below it close to the standard of the balance. Close by
the soul stand two goddesses called Meskhenet and
Renenet respectively ; the former is, probably, one of
the four goddesses who assisted at the resurrection of
Osiris, and the latter the personification of Fortune,
which has already been included under the Meskhenet
object above, the personification of Destiny.

It will be remembered that Meskhenet accompanied
Isis, Nephthys, Heqet, and Khnemu to the house of the
lady Rut-Tettet, who was about to bring forth three
children. When these deities arrived, having changed
their forms into those of women, they found Ra-user
standing there. And when they had made music for
him, he said to them, “ Mistresses, there is a woman
in travail here;” and they replied, “Let us see her,
for we know how to deliver a woman.” Ra-user then
brought them into the house, and the goddesses shut
themselves in with the lady Rut-Tettet. Isis took
her place before her, and Nephthys behind her, whilst
Heqet hastened the birth of the children; as each
child was born Meskhenet stepped up to him and
said, “ A king who shall have dominion over the whole

142 THE DECEASED’S ADDRESS TO HIS HEART.

land,” and the god Khnemu bestowed health upon
his limbs.1 Of these five gods, Isis, Nephthys, Mesk-
henet, Heqet, and Khnemu, the first three are present
at the judgment of Ani ; Khnemu is mentioned in Ani’s
address to his heart (see below), and only Heqet is
unrepresented.

As the weighing of his heart is about to take place
Ani says, “ My heart, my mother ! My heart, my
mother ! My heart whereby I came into being ! May
naught stand up to oppose me in the judgment ; may
there be no opposition to me in the presence of the
sovereign princes ; may there be no parting of thee
from me in the presence of him that keepeth the
Balance ! Thou art my ka , the dweller in my body ;
the god Khnemu who knitteth and strengthened my
limbs. Mayest thou come forth into the place of
happiness whither we go. May the princes of the
court of Osiris, who order the circumstances of the
lives of men, not cause my name to stink.” Some
papyri add, “Let it be satisfactory unto us, and let
the listening be satisfactory unto us, and let there
be joy of heart unto us at the weighing of words. Let
not that which is false be uttered against me before
the great god, the lord of Amentet ! Yerily how great
shalt thou be when thou risest in triumph ! ”

The tongue of the balance having been examined

1 See Erman, Westcar Papyrus, Berlin, 1890, hieroglyphic tran¬
script, plates 9 and 10.

THE SPEECH OF THOTH.

143

by Anubis, and the ape having indicated to his associate
Thoth that the beam is exactly straight, and that the
heart-, therefore, counterbalances the feather symbolic
of Maat (i.e., right, truth, law, etc.), neither outwemhinor
nor underweighing it, Thoth writes down the result,
and then makes the following address to the gods : —

“ Hear ye this judgment. The heart of Osiris hath
in very truth been weighed, and his soul hath stood
as a witness for him ; it hath been found true by trial
in the Great Balance. There hath not been found any
wickedness in him; he hath not wasted the offerings
in the temples ; he hath not done harm by his deeds ;
and he spread abroad no evil reports while he was
upon earth.”

In answer to this report the company of the gods,
who are styled “the great company of the gods,”
reply, “ That which cometh forth from thy mouth,
0 Thoth, who dwellest in Khemennu (Hermopolis),
is confirmed. Osiris, the scribe Ani, triumphant, is
holy and righteous. He hath not sinned, neither hath
he done evil against us. The Devourer Ain-mit shall
not be allowed to prevail over him, and meat-offerings
and entrance into the presence of the god Osiris shall
be granted unto him, together with a homestead for ever
in the Field of Peace, as unto the followers of Horus.” 1

1 These are a class of mythological beings, or demi-gods, who
already in the Vth dynasty were supposed to recite prayers on behalf
of the deceased, and to assist Horus and Set in performing funeral
ceremonies. See my Papyrus of Ani , p. cxxv.

144 THE DECEASED MADE “ TRUE OF VOICE.”

' Here we notice at once that the deceased is identified
with Osiris, the god and judge of the dead, and that
they have bestowed upon him the god’s own name ;
the reason of this is as follows. The friends of the
deceased performed for him all the ceremonies and
rites which were performed for Osiris by Isis and
Nephthys, and it was assumed that, as a result, the
same things which took place in favour of Osiris
would also happen on behalf of the deceased, and that
in fact, the deceased would become the counterpart
of Osiris. Everywhere in the texts of the Book of
the Dead the deceased is identified with Osiris, from
B.c. 3400 to the Eoman period. Another point to
notice is the application of the words mad kheru to
the deceased, a term which I have, for want of a better
word, rendered “ triumphant.” These words actually
mean “ true of voice ” or “ right of word,” and indicate
that the person to whom they are applied has acquired
the power of using his voice in such a way that when
the invisible beings are addressed by him they will
render unto him all the service which he has obtained
the right to demand. It is well known that in ancient
times magicians and sorcerers were wont to address
spirits or demons in a peculiar tone of voice, and that
all magical formulae were recited in a similar manner ;
the use of the wrong sound or tone of voice would
result in the most disastrous consequences to the
speaker, and perhaps in death. The deceased had

WORDS OF POWER.

145

to make his way through a number of regions in the
underworld, and to pass through many series of halls,
the doors of which were guarded by beings who were
prepared, unless properly addressed, to be hostile to
the new-comer ; he also had need to take passage in
a boat, and to obtain the help of the gods and of the
powers of the various localities wherein he wanted to
travel if he wished to pass safely into the place where
he would be. The Book of the Dead provided him
with all the texts and formulae which he would have
to recite to secure this result, but unless the words
contained in them were pronounced in a proper manner,
and"said~ in a proper tone of ..voice, they would have
no effect upon the powers of the underworld. The
term mad kherw is applied but very rarely to the
•living, but com mrm 1 v to the dead, and indeed the dead
needed most the power which these words indicated.
In the case of Ani, the gods, having accepted the
favourable report of the result obtained by weighing
Ani s heart by Thoth, style him mad kheru, which is
equivalent to conferring upon him power to overcome
all opposition, of every kind, which he may meet.
Henceforth every door will open at his command, every
god will hasten to obey immediately Ani has uttered
his name, and those whose duty it is to provide
celestial food for the beatified will do so for him when
once the order has been given. Before passing on
to other matters it is interesting to note that the term

L

OSIRIS IN HIS SHRINE.

146

maa Tcheru is not applied to Ani by himself in the
Judgment Scene, nor by Thoth, the scribe of the gods,
nor by Horus when he introduces him to Osiris ; it
is only the gods who can make a man maa kheru, and
thereby he also escapes from the Devourer.

The judgment ended, Horus, the son of Isis, who
has assumed all the attributes of his father Osiris,
takes Ani’s left hand in his right and leads him up to
the shrine wherein the god Osiris is seated. The god
wears the white crown with feathers, and he holds in
fils hands a sceptre, a crook, and whin, or flail, which
typify sovereignty and^dominion His throne is a
tomb, of which the bolted doors and the cornice of uraei
may be seen painted on the side. At the back of his
neck hangs the menat or symbol of joy and happiness ;
on his right hand stands Nephthys, and on his left
stands Isis. Before him, standing on a lotus flower,
are theTour children of Horus, Mestha, Hapi, Tuamutef,
and Qebhsennuf, who presided over and protected the
* intestines of the dead ; close by hangs the skin of a
bull with which magical ideas seem to have been
associated. The top of the shrine in which the god
sits is surmounted by uraei, wearing disks on their
heads, and the cornice also is similarly decorated. In
several papyri the god is seen standing up in the
shrine, sometimes with and sometimes without the
goddesses Isis and Nephthys. In the Papyrus of
Hunefer we find a most interesting variant of this

ADDRESS OF THE DECEASED TO OSIRIS. 149

portion of the scene, for the throne of Osiris rests
upon, or in, water. This reminds us of the passage
in the one hundred and twenty-sixth chapter of the
Book of the Dead in which the god Thoth says to the
deceased, “ Who is he whose roof is of fire, whose walls
are living uraei, and the floor of whose house is a
stream of running water ? Who is he, I say ? ” The
deceased answers, “It is Osiris,” and the god says,
“ Come forward, then ; for verily thou shalt be men¬
tioned [to him].”

When Horus had led in Ani he addressed Osiris,
saying, “I have come unto thee, 0 Un-nefer, and I
have brought the Osiris Ani unto thee. His heart
hath been found righteous and it hath come forth from
the balance; it hath not sinned against any god or
any goddess. Thoth hath weighed it according to the
decree uttered unto him by the company of the gods ;
and it is very true and right. Grant unto him cakes
and ale ; and let him enter into thy presence ; and may
he be like unto the followers of Horus for ever ! ”
After this address Ani, kneeling by the side of tables
of offerings of fruit, flowers, etc., which he has brought
unto Osiris, says, “0 Lord of Amentet, I am in thy
presence. There is no sin in me, I have not lied
wittingly, nor have I done aught with a false heart.
Grant that I may be like unto those favoured ones
who are round about thee, and that I may be an
Osiris greatly favoured of the beautiful god and

150 ADDRESS TO GODS OF THE UNDERWORLD.

beloved of the Lord of the world, [I], the royal scribe
of Maat, who loveth him, Ani, triumphant before
Osiris.”1 Thus we come to the end of the scene of the
weighing of the heart.

The man who has passed safely through this ordeal
has now to meet the gods of the underworld, and the
Book of the Dead provides the words which “ the heart
which is righteous and sinless ” shall say unto them.
One of the fullest and most correct texts of “ the speech
of the deceased when he cometh forth true of voice
from the Hall of the Maati goddesses ” is found in the
Papyrus of Hu ; in it the deceased says : —

“ Homage to you, 0 ye gods who dwell in the Hall of
the Maati goddesses, I, even I, know you, and I know
your names. Let me not fall under your knives of
slaughter, and bring ye not forward my wickedness
unto the god in whose train ye are ; and let not evil
hap come upon me by your means. 0 declare ye me
true of voice in the presence of Heb-er-tcher, because
I have done that which is right and true in Ta-mera
( [i.e ., Egypt). I have not cursed God, therefore let not
evil hap come upon me through the King who dwelleth
in his day.

“ Homage to you, O ye gods, who dwell in the Hall
of the Maati goddesses, who are without evil in your

1 Or “ true of voice in respect of Osiris ; ” i.e., Ani makes his
petition, and Osiris is to hear and answer because he has uttered
the right words in the right manner, and in the right tone of voice.

FINAL CONFESSION.

151

bodies, and who live upon right and truth, and who
feed yourselves upon right and truth in the presence
of the god Horus, who dwelleth in his divine Disk ;
deliver ye me from the god Baba 1 who feedeth upon
the entrails of the mighty ones upon the day of the
great reckoning. 0 grant ye that I may come to you,
for I have not committed faults, I have not sinned,
I have not done evil, I have not borne false witness ;
therefore let nothing [evil] be done unto me. I live
upon right and truth, and I feed upon right and truth.
I have performed the commandments of men [as well
as] the things whereat are gratified the gods ; I have
made God to be at peace [with me by doing] that
which is his will. I have given bread to the hungry
man, and water to the thirsty man, and apparel to the
naked man, and a boat to the [shipwrecked] mariner.
I have made holy offerings to the gods, and sepulchral
meals to the beatified dead. Be ye then my deliverers,
be ye then my protectors, and make ye not accusation
against me in the presence of [Osiris]. I am clean
of mouth and clean of hands ; therefore let it be said
unto me by those who shall behold me, ‘ Come in peace,
come in peace/ I have heard the mighty word which
the spiritual bodies spake unto the Cat 2 in the house

1 The firstborn son of Osiris.

2 l.e., Ka as the slayer of the serpent of darkness, the head of which
tie cuts off with a knife. (See above, p. 63). The usual reading is
“ which the Ass spake to the Cat ; ” the Ass being Osiris and the
Cat Ka.

152

ADDRESS TO OSIRIS.

of Hapt-re. I have testified in the presence of Hra-f-
ha-f, and he hath given [his] decision. I have seen
the things over which the Persea tree spreadeth within
Pe-stan. I am he who hath offered up prayers to the
gods and who knoweth their persons. I have come,
and I have advanced to make the declaration of right
and truth, and to set the Balance upon what supporteth
it in the region of Aukert.

" Hail, thou who art exalted upon thy standard (i.e.,
Osiris), thou lord of the * Atefu ’ crown whose name is
proclaimed as ‘ Lord of the winds/ deliver thou me from
thy divine messengers who cause dire deeds to happen,
and who cause calamities to come into being, and who
are without coverings for their faces, for I have done
that which is right and true for the Lord of right and
truth. I have purified myself and my breast with
libations, and my hinder parts with the things which
make clean, and my inward parts have been [immersed]
in the Pool of Eight and Truth. There is no single
member of mine which lacketh right and truth. I have
been purified in the Pool of the South, and I have
rested in the City of the North, which is in the Pield
of the Grasshoppers, wherein the divine sailors of Ea
bathe at the second hour of the night and at the third
hour of the day ; and the hearts of the gods are gratified
after they have passed through it, whether it be by
night, or whether it be by day. And I would that they
should say unto me, ‘Come forward/ and ‘Who art

THE DECEASED AND THE GODS CONVERSE. 1 53

thou ? and ‘ What is thy name ? ’ These are the words
which I would have the gods say unto me. [Then
would I reply] ‘ My name is He who is provided with
flowers, and Dweller in his olive tree.’ Then let them
say unto me straightway, ‘ Pass on/ and I would pass
on to the city to the north of the Olive tree. ‘What
then wilt thou see there ? ’ [say they. And I say] ‘ The
Leg and the Thigh.’ ‘What wouldst thou say unto
them ? ’ [say they.] ‘ Let me see rejoicings in the land
of the Fenkhu ’ [I reply]. ‘ What will they give thee ?
[say they]. ‘A fiery flame and a crystal tablet’ [I
reply]. ‘ What wilt thou do therewith ? ’ [say they].

‘ Bury them by the furrow of Maaat as Things for the
night’ [I reply]. ‘What wilt thou find by the
furrow of Maaat ? ’ [say they]. ‘ A sceptre of flint called
Giver of Air ’ [I reply]. ‘What wilt thou do with the
fiery flame and the crystal tablet after thou hast buried
them ? ’ [say they]. ‘ I will recite words over them in
the furrow. I will extinguish the fire, and I will break
the tablet, and I will make a pool of water ’ [I reply].
Then let the gods say unto me, ‘Come and enter in
through the door of this Hall of the Maati goddesses,
for thou knowest us.’ ”

After these remarkable prayers follows a dialogue
between each part of the Hall of Maati and the deceased,
which reads as follows : —

Door bolts. “We will not let thee enter in through us
unless thou tellest our names.”

154

THE KNOWING OF NAMES.

Deceased. “ * Tongue of the place of Right and Truth ’
is your name.”

Eight post. “ I will not let thee enter in by me unless
thou tellest my name.”

Deceased. “ ‘ Scale of the lifter up of right and truth ’
is thy name.”

Left post. “ I will not let thee enter in by me unless
thou tellest my name.”

Deceased. “ ‘ Scale of wine ’ is thy name.”

Threshold. “ I will not let thee pass over me unless
thou tellest my name.”

Deceased. “ ‘ Ox of the god Seb ’ is thy name.”

Hasp. “ I will not open unto thee unless thou tellest
my name.”

Deceased. “ 1 Leg-bone of his mother ’ is thy name.”

Socket-hole. “ I will not open unto thee unless thou
tellest my name.”

Deceased. “ * Living Eye of Sebek, the lord of Bakliau,’
is thy name.”

Porter. “ I will not open unto thee unless thou tellest
my name.”

Deceased. “ f Elbow of the god Shu when he placeth
himself to protect Osiris ’ is thy name.”

Side posts. “ We will not let thee pass in by us, unless
thou tellest our names.”

Deceased. “ ‘ Children of the uraei-goddesses ’ is your
name.”

“ Thou knowest us ; pass on, therefore, by us ” [say
these].

THE KNOWING OF NAMES. 1 55

Floor. “I will not let thee tread upon me, because
I am silent and I am holy, and because I do not know
the names of thy feet wherewith thou wouldst walk
upon me ; therefore tell them to me.”

Deceased. “ ‘ Traveller of the god Khas ’ is the name
of my right foot, and * Staff of the goddess Hathor ’ is
the name of my left foot.”

“ Thou knowest me ; pass on, therefore, over me ” [it
saith].

Doorkeeper. “ I will not take in thy name unless thou
tellest my name.”

Deceased. ‘“Discerner of hearts and searcher of the
reins ’ is thy name.”

Doorkeeper. “Who is the god that dwelleth in his
hour ? Utter his name.”

Deceased. “ * Maau-Taui ’ is his name.”

Doorkeeper. “ And who is Maau-Taui ? ”

Deceased. “ He is Thoth.”

Thoth. “ Come ! But why hast thou come ? ”

Deceased. “ I have come and I press forward that my
name may be mentioned.”

Thoth. “ In what state art thou ? ”

Deceased. “ I am purified from evil things, and I am
protected from the baleful deeds of those who live in
their days; and I am not of them.”

Thoth. “ How will I make mention of thy name
[to the god]. And who is he whose roof is of
fire, whose walls are living uraei, and the floor of

156 THE REWARD OF THE DECEASED.

whose house is a stream of water ? Who is he, I
say ? ”

Deceased. “ It is Osiris.”

Thoth. “ Come forward, then ; verily, mention of thy
name shall be made unto him. Thy cakes [shall come]
from the Eye of Ba ; and thine ale [shall come] from
the Eye of Ba ; and thy sepulchral meals upon earth
[shall come] from the Eye of Ba.”

With these words Chapter CXXV comes to an end.
We have seen how the deceased has passed through the
ordeal of the judgment, and how the scribes provided
him with hymns and prayers, and with the words of a
confession with a view of facilitating his passage through
the dread Hall of the Maati goddesses. Unfortunately
the answer which the god Osiris may be supposed to
have made to his son Horus in respect of the deceased
is not recorded, but there is no doubt that the Egyptian
assumed that it would be favourable to him, and that
permission would be accorded him to enter into each
and every portion of the underworld, and to partake of
all the delights which the beatified enjoyed under the
rule of Ba and Osiris.

( 157 )